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Chapter 546: Su Chen's Training Begins
Chapter 546: Su Chen's Training Begins
January 9th, 2025
Some things are easier for the younger generation to say, but it's not the same for the elders.
Those who come here have varying backgrounds, more or less.
When the elders come to critique, the matter becomes somewhat serious.
Sometimes, others might take it seriously, and resentment could arise.
The younger generation is different; they can be more outspoken, and a slight slip of the tongue is no big deal.
Even if others are dissatisfied, their backing forces might hold them accountable.
Their elders would ask the younger ones to apologize and admit their mistakes.
And all problems would be resolved.
As for why there must be this critique segment, Su Chen had two speculations.
First, perhaps they felt that the competition was monotonous.
With more critiques, there would be different understandings of each other's performances.
Although it might not sound pleasant, it also provided a unique insight into one's own strength.
The second speculation was that the various forces might use this opportunity to belittle each other.
The final results were directly related to the number of invitations each of the six forces could obtain annually.
By belittling each other, they could later suppress their opponents and compete for more qualifications with a legitimate reason.
The training competition continued, and Su Chen watched the participants ahead with focus.
The water rushing down the Celestial Vortex Waterfall seemed to tense up everyone who came into contact with it.
It was as if some special Qi Array was draining their endurance.
The second person barely made it past one-third of the waterfall before falling.
Then came the third and fourth participants.
As Su Chen's attendant, Tao Mu, had said, those who could climb halfway or even seventy to eighty percent were extremely exceptional.
Most people couldn't get past one-third of the Celestial Vortex Waterfall.
One after another, all six forces had already sent their participants.
Their performances weren't particularly impressive.
Tao Mu, standing beside Su Chen, glanced at him when he saw the results.
Su Chen noticed and understood his meaning.
This glance was actually directed at Su Chen.
Previously, he hadn't believed Tao Mu's words and had delusions of reaching the highest point.
Now, seeing the performances of others, his thoughts should have settled down.
The day's training continued, and the Celestial Vortex Waterfall training could only accommodate one person at a time.
A total of twenty people were participating.
But at the current pace, it seemed they would finish before the end of the day.
The first few participants spent too little time on the waterfall, not even as long as the time wasted on their hesitation and doubts.
However, starting from the seventh person, the results improved significantly.
It seemed that all six forces had placed their slightly more capable members in the latter half.
Su Chen's Golden Bell Society had only four participants.
Su Chen and Xu Qiming had secured their spots with Upper Invitations.
One of the remaining two also had an Upper Invitation from the Golden Bell Society's upper echelon.
The only one who had fought their way up from below had already been eliminated.
In the eyes of the onlookers, the Golden Bell Society was under some pressure.
Their performance last year had been lackluster, and this year was no better.
If not for Su Chen's Upper Invitation, they would have had only two participants in the final training.
Three consecutive years of poor performance would be problematic.
According to the rules, they might even lose their Upper Invitations.
Xu Shengying's expression turned serious as she turned her gaze towards her nephew.
She placed her hopes on him.
Xu Qiming had grown up in Celestial Vortex Town and had witnessed the Celestial Vortex Waterfall training every year.
Although he hadn't personally experienced climbing the waterfall, he was well aware of the swift currents and potential dangers.
Xu Shengying still held onto a glimmer of hope.
As the competition continued, the twelfth participant was Xu Qiming.
As the heir of the Golden Bell Society, he had lived here for a long time.
Most of the people around should know Xu Qiming.
Especially the younger generation from the other six forces.
They had been competing with each other for who knows how many years.
Xu Qiming's performance today was also crucial.
It was important not only for the Golden Bell Society behind him but also as a testament to himself.
He approached the base of the waterfall.
The rushing waterfall poured onto his body.
Xu Qiming seemed to withstand the pressure better than the others.
He felt some pressure, but from his expression, Xu Qiming appeared much more relaxed.
He reached out, touching the waterfall as he began to climb upwards.
The turbulent waterfall cascaded over him, but Xu Qiming remained steady.
His ascent was swift and composed.
Someone from the crowd began to critique, and most of the young people belittled Xu Qiming's performance.
For years, they had competed against each other, and it seemed that the mainstream opinion was to belittle and suppress each other.
However, in Su Chen's eyes, Xu Qiming's performance was not bad.
His physical strength was superior to the previous eleven participants.
Additionally, Xu Qiming's techniques were also quite ingenious.
It was evident that his adaptability was exceptional.
Within a quarter of an hour, Xu Qiming had already covered half the distance.
The results he achieved surpassed the best among the previous eleven.
It was commendable.
During the climbing process, his skills were impressive.
His understanding of his own abilities was precise.
Xu Qiming did not face the situation where his mind had ideas, but his body couldn't keep up.
In fact, more than one or two of the previous climbers encountered this issue.
Many of their failures occurred when they realized their abilities fell far short of their expectations after taking action.
They might have had great plans in mind, but their actual strength fell short, making it impossible to achieve their goals.
As Xu Qiming climbed higher, the sarcastic comments around him gradually diminished.
Performance was the foundation of everything; as long as your performance was good enough, those who spoke ill of you would naturally decrease.
After observing so many people's performances, Su Chen had already formed some judgments.
Climbing the Celestial Vortex Waterfall required not only strength but also technique.
However, this training at the Celestial Vortex Waterfall was ultimately designed to temper warriors.
Relying on techniques could provide some assistance.
But it was not the key to reaching the highest point.
To conquer the Celestial Vortex Waterfall, one's strength was still the most crucial factor.
Su Chen could see that after passing the halfway point, the water flow became increasingly turbulent.
There seemed to be no other way but to face the challenge head-on.
The Celestial Vortex Waterfall didn't offer many opportunities to utilize techniques.
One could only say that employing techniques in the first half could help conserve more energy.
This allowed them to face the challenges in the latter half with greater ease, and that was the limit.
Indeed, after climbing about two-thirds of the way, the person fell directly downward.
Xu Qiming's limit was around this level.
The guards below hurried to catch him.
As Xu Qiming emerged from the waterfall, there wasn't much joy on his face.
Even though he had achieved the best result so far, he was still dissatisfied.
The expressions of the Golden Bell Society members, including his aunt Xu Shengying, were not pleasant.
As Xu Qiming returned to the crowd, water droplets still dripped from his body.
Related comments began to circulate around him.
"Brother Qiming, if you're not ready, it's better to wait and participate later.
This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity is gone, and in the future, you'll have to fight for a chance to climb this waterfall."
"This time, he didn't even reach seventy percent of the height; it's quite disappointing."
The younger generation from other factions commented with disdain.
It seemed that their previous achievements were better than this.
"If you're not ready, it's better to wait a couple of years before sending out the Upper Invitation.
Now, you've embarrassed yourself."
Amidst the crowd's criticism, the next person began their training.
...
The next person seemed to be even more powerful.
Three people in a row climbed to seventy percent of the height.
Some even reached eighty percent.
"Brother Qiming, look at others.
As someone from Celestial Vortex Town, you seem to be lacking in many aspects.
Your stamina and impact force are significantly inferior."
Xu Qiming was speechless in the face of these comments.
He held his breath but had no retort.
He seemed to know that he had no right to fight back and could only endure the ridicule.
Seeing Xu Qiming like this, Su Chen felt a bit more sympathy for him.
The qualification he held was obtained from Qiu Xiyu and then given to him.
Feeling sympathy for him was not a problem.
Additionally, Su Chen didn't think Xu Qiming was that bad.
When he first climbed the waterfall, there were many aspects worth learning from.
Thinking of this, Su Chen, who had been silent, couldn't help but speak up.
"Everyone, Brother Xu might not be as bad as you say.
His techniques and skills in climbing the Celestial Vortex Waterfall are also top-notch.
From my observation, Brother Xu has reached the pinnacle.
He was just slightly unprepared, and there was a lack of consideration for the overall training process."
Su Chen's words directly defended Xu Qiming.
Despite the past grievances, Su Chen was speaking up for him.
Xu Qiming was now facing ridicule from all sides, and no one around him was coming to his defense.
Even the younger members of the Golden Bell Society chose to remain silent.
Su Chen's words were, in a way, a challenge to everyone else.
It was as if he was showing some sympathy for Xu Qiming and speaking up for him.
As his words fell, many eyes around him turned towards Su Chen.
Instead of refuting, it was Xu Qiming who spoke first.
Xu Qiming, who had been silent until now, looked at Su Chen with disgust.
"Can you shut up? Do you think you're qualified to praise me? This is Celestial Vortex Town; do we need your praise?
What kind of strength and foundation do I have that you need to explain?
Your praise only makes me look down on myself even more."
The disgust on Xu Qiming's face was clear.
In his eyes, not only did he not want Su Chen to evaluate him, but he also didn't want any praise or flattery from him.
The people around heard Xu Qiming's response, and their initial surprise quickly turned into smiles.
They were mocking Su Chen.
He had tried to help someone else, but now he was the one being looked down upon.
"What strength and abilities do you have? Don't you know your own limits? How dare you speak for me!
Can you even make it halfway up this Celestial Vortex Waterfall?"
After Xu Qiming finished speaking, the others joined in.
"Speaking too much only brings trouble. It's best to keep quiet if you don't have the strength."
The younger generation around him laughed as they spoke.
Su Chen's words had indeed helped Xu Qiming to some extent.
Many who had ridiculed him now turned to tease Su Chen instead.
The laughter around him grew even louder than before.
"Helping someone only to be scolded by the one being praised, that's quite a funny story."
"Indeed, it's the first time I've seen this in many years.
But if I were in his shoes, I'd probably do the same as Brother Qiming.
Praise from someone with no real abilities sounds unreliable.
And with such incoherent and nonsensical words, it's more embarrassing."
As the teasing continued, the person ahead of Su Chen in line had already finished their training.
Su Chen was the eighteenth person to undergo the trial.
The ones before him had performed much better.
Three of them had slightly better results than Xu Qiming.
As a junior member of the Golden Bell Society, his performance during the trial was overshadowed by most of the others.
Moreover, this year was considered an 'inferior year', a year without any exceptional geniuses.
In such a year, Xu Qiming's performance was still overshadowed by many, leaving him with a loss of face.
Hearing the taunts around him, Su Chen didn't bother to argue with them.
Indeed, he hadn't expected that speaking up for Xu Qiming would result in him being blamed.
Without strength and status, even well-intentioned words could be misunderstood.
These were minor matters; the only thing Su Chen needed to focus on was the Celestial Vortex Waterfall trial ahead.
Su Chen didn't let this brief interruption affect his state of mind.
As the person ahead of him left, Su Chen followed.
Perhaps it was because Su Chen had spoken up earlier, drawing more attention from the crowd.
Many had mocking expressions on their faces, discussing Su Chen among themselves.
When they learned that Su Chen's Upper Invitation was given to him by someone else, the sarcastic comments increased.
At this moment, Su Chen had already reached the turbulent waterfall.
In an instant, a powerful aura seemed to envelop him.
The swift current created layer upon layer of aura.
These auras were bizarre, stripping away one's martial arts prowess layer by layer.
Anyone standing beneath this current would first think about resisting the aura it brought forth rather than climbing upwards.
This peculiar situation was indeed a first for Su Chen.
However, he found a similar sensation to the turbulence emitted by the Chaos Sphere.
The difference was that the water current before him was physical, and the aura formed within the turbulence had an even greater impact.
"Why are you just standing there? Can't you even take a single step?"
From the sidelines, someone had already started commenting on Su Chen, urging him to begin.
In truth, Su Chen hadn't lingered for long; compared to others, his pause was relatively brief.
Others often took a quarter of an hour to prepare before starting.
Even Xu Qiming had taken a long time to gather himself.
(End of Chapter)
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